Former House of Representatives Speaker, Ghali Umar Na’Abba is set to dump the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) for the All Progressives Congress (APC), the Daily Times has learnt.
Na’Abba, whose leadership of the House was a major thorn in the flesh of the Olusegun Obasanjo administration, was a major face in the Goodluck Jonathan campaign in 2011.
His support for Jonathan in that election, against Northern candidates like Major General Muhammadu Buhari and Nuhu Ribadu, drew the ire of rioters from that geo-political region.
The Sharada, Kano home of Na’Abba was burnt by irate youths who unleashed mayhem on the supporters of the president after the results of the elections were announced and it became clear that Jonathan had won.
He has since been off the political radar. An ally of the former Speaker told the Daily Times at the weekend that the Jonathan administration him after the electoral victory, in spite of his personal losses.
Na’Abba was said to be particularly miffed that the Jonathan government, which dropped him like a used rag gave instant recognistion to former Kano State Governor, Ibrahim Shekarau, who dumped the All Progressives Congress (APC) for the PDP. Shekarau has since been appointed Minister of Education.
A source told Daily Times at the weekend: “It is a done deal. Na’Abba has already dumped the PDP for the APC. The PDP is a use-and-dump party. The former Speaker has come to that final conclusion that he has to move.”
The rival APC is upbeat about the possibility of having the former Number Four citizen in its fold.
A Special Assistant to the Kano State Governor, Alh. Mujahid Zeta confirmed to the Daily Times that talks are ongoing between his party and Na’Abba.
On why the APC considers the former Speaker a big fish, Zeta said: “Na’Abba is a charismatic leader whose contributions to the nation’s democracy cannot be over-emphasised.”
According to him, Na’Abba as a popular politician in the North has done a lot for the PDP but the party has relegated him to the background.”
Zeta quoted a recent statement by the PDP’s national chairman Adamu Mu’azu that the party is fond of using people and dumping them. The aide to Governor Musa Kwankwaso said: “Considering the significant contributions Ghali gave to Jonathan in 2011, the party is not in any way supposed to treat him the way he has been treated.”
Zeta said that Nigerians have seen that the APC is their hope of salvation. He said that but for the fact that Kwankwaso is running for the Kano Central Senatorial seat, Ghali would have been the automatic candidate for that contest for being popular within and outside the state. He added: “All things being equal, the APC is ready to recognise his effort in the country”.